White Stockings
by Puffy Tribulation
Summary: This story got something to do with Yuri's flashback in Covenant. Curious to find out why it's named 'White Stockings? The story will reveal it later. Take two on Chp.2! XD
1. Chapter 1

This is transferred from the back of my diary.O.O Yeah, I still keep one of those things. Anyway, this story is quite old, transferring it here for no other reason but pure sentiments. Hehe!

Disclaimer: Shadow Hearts and all related characters belong to Sacnoth/Nautilius, Aruze. The fiction and other fancies is mine. :)

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(O)White Stockings(O)

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Chapter One: The Morning After.

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The interior of the crammed laboratory looked like Sheraton Hotel to the weary fighters as they groggily stepped down from the teleporter.

After the defeat of the Meta God, they had feared of finding their way back to earth, but just before the giant platform vanished, Roger's nifty machine transported them back safely.

They found the poor old wrinkled man about to collapse from exhaustion on the giant hamster wheel, his tongue nearly lolling out through panting lips.

Of course Roger would be outraged should he hear them refer to his 'generator' a hamster wheel, but at that moment, they were too tired to say or do anything but seek the most comfortable spot in Roger's laboratory.

"How was it?" The old man asked as the group slowly made their way in the lab.

"If yer looking for god from the nebula blah blah, we sent him packing along with a few souvenirs." Yuri said, flexing his tired wrists. "Now quit yapping Roger, we can discuss all these tomorrow over a little tea party. Right now, we gotta catch a few blinks."

Heedless of the aches in his body, Yuri secured the sleeping couch for Alice, pushing off Halley as the boy was about to lie down on it.

"Move aside scumbag!" Yuri growled wearily, "Where's yer manners? Didn't yer mama ever teach ya the words 'Ladies first?'"

"Yuri!" Alice tugged on his sleeve, all of them were so bone weary, she didn't want the two to start arguing now.

As it was, Halley was clearly too tired to fight back, letting his dirty finger do the talking for him.

"Why you!" The fusionist growled, about to grab the boy with a sudden burst of excess energy. And he would have caught Halley too, if not for Alice who stepped in between them.

"Stop it! We don't need this right now." She said, wondering where on earth Yuri got that much energy. His body felt so tense beneath her hand as if priming for a fight, Alice shook her head with a sigh, struggling to keep her eyelids open. No matter how small, Yuri wanted to be the one to say the last word.

"Let him go." She watched, smiling helplessly when Halley stuck his tongue out at them before climbing up on a table, heedless of the various glass apparatus and other paraphernalia Roger kept there for his experiments. The thought of accidentally breaking the gadgets never bothered the boy and tugging his cap lower to cover his eyes, Halley settled down for the night, curled on his side.

"I swear this place ain't big enough fer the two of us!" Yuri growled grumpily, allowing Alice to pull him down to sit on the couch.

"You can beat him up tomorrow." She said, yawning behind her hand, and then sinking down to lie on the couch with a gratifying sigh.

"You won't try to stop me?" Yuri asked, looking down at her as she closed her eyes. He knew Alice wasn't serious when she murmured 'uh-hmm', she could barely hold her head up, much less know what she's talking about.

He knew the extent of her weariness when she didn't protest when he lay down beside her and snuggled her in his arms, she has never been comfortable when he gets 'too close', but for the moment, she seemed to welcome his nearness. The couch was narrow and too short for him, but he wanted to hold her and assure a secret part of him that still fears for her safety.

She smelled heavenly too him, so soft in his arms and her warmth a simple pleasure that made him smile idiotically when she buried her nose against his neck, tickling him with her breath. His body was beginning to protest the uncomfortable position, but he wasn't about to relinquish his prize.

Suddenly someone propped a chair behind his hips to support his straining body. Yuri looked behind him to see Margarete, who had just turned away.

The added support eased his position, just comfortable enough to let him sleep. He brushed back silky locks of hair from Alice's face, and looked at her sleeping features, he was weary to the bone, but he fought off sleep for a few more moments, simply drinking in her nearness, and the quiet, almost humbling joy she gave him. Of simply being alive with her.

His lips were cracked and dry, and they almost stung when he brushed a kiss on her forehead, but the simple pleasure of feeling her soft skin was worth any discomfort and the idiotic grin was back.

From her corner of the Lab, Margarete fidgeted on the flattened boxes that served as her makeshift bed. Her body was screaming for healing sleep, but her mind won't give her peace.

_Where's yer manners? Didn't yer mama ever teach ya the words 'Ladies first?'_ She could still hear Yuri's voice echoing in her ears. She looked behind her to see the couple who have tried to fit in the narrow couch and felt another twinge of jealousy.

_Ladies first huh?_ She thought, a little derisive smile lining her face. Too bad he could only see one lady. What does that make her? Margarete snorted as she realized what she had been thinking. But she couldn't help it. She's still jealous of Alice, and wished…

_Hah!_ She thought to herself, _Miss Spy Genius never pines for any man!_ Men chase after her, not the other way around! But still…Yuri isn't just any man.

It was futile she knew, the man got eyes only for one. Oh sure, he had made passes at her, but it hurts to think that he's only after her body, not her smiles or her thoughts, not even her companionship. Margarete cringed as she tried to stop the thoughts running in her head.

_Men! I don't need them!_ She thought fiercely. And she had proven this to herself and the world. But she couldn't deny that deep inside, there's a part of her that wants to be treated like a girl, no, not someone helpless…just that extra, gentle consideration for her weaker constitution.

Sure, she can take care of herself…but it sure feels good to have someone worry over her, the same way Yuri wo—

Margarete made a frustrated sound as she shifted to a new position abruptly. She had thought she had no more romantic feelings left, she thought she had outgrown those girly dreams and fantasies…but she is wrong.

_Hah! I'm just tired._ She reasoned to herself. _Tomorrow I won't even remember the things I've thought today._

Weariness finally took their toll and she found herself slowly slipping into sleep. She has never been eager to embrace nothingness as she did in that moment, but a traitorous thought still haunted her before all consciousness fled.

_…it would have felt good to have someone hold you, celebrating life with you…especially after a narrow escape from death…_

(O)

She would have loved to sleep some more, but her biological clock worked too perfectly even after a day of stress. She sighed at the delicious warmth that cocooned her body, wondering where Yuri found the quilt to warm her through the night.

The breath that fanned her forehead made her eyes fly open. Her eyes went huge at the close proximity of their faces, and the nearly seamless closeness of their bodies locked together. He snored lightly, his eyes still closed in sleep, the dark lashes thick and long as a woman's. He looked so much like a child that the protest died on her lips. His face was smudged with dirt, his hair all tangled, the side of his lips puffy and bruised after sustaining a blow on the face and there were blood stains all over him. He looked like a man dragged from the pits of hell, but never had she found him more compelling than he did now.

In sleep, his usual mocking features were relaxed, not sneering nor taunting, making him even more handsome. There was an air of danger about him that lingered even in repose, but she knew the man beneath the rough, crude exterior, and she knew who he really is, what he is capable of…

Just then he wrapped his leg over her, pulling her closer to him, the blood rushed from her face when she felt a distinct hard shape press against her.

Alice didn't think, driven only by sheer instincts, she pushed him away, her only thought to put a distance between her and the vulgar thing between his legs.

"Aw Shit!" Yuri swore as his sore body absorbed the impact of his fall, rudely waking him up. Too shocked for a moment to do anything, he lay there on the floor and gazed up at the ceiling and wondered what the hell happened to him.

A heartbeat later, he saw her small face peep at him from the couch.

"Alice?" He said, his voice still scratchy from sleep. "_You_ pushed me?" He asked incredulously, as the thought occurred to him.

The heightened pink color on her cheeks betrayed her, and she did look guilty.

But when he would have sat up beside her, Alice gave a little squeak and jumped away from him.

"What?" He asked, wondering what got into her suddenly. He made a show of sniffing his under arms and shrugged. "Hey, I sure don't smell like flowers, but you certainly didn't mind as much last night!"

"Well you didn't have _that_ last night either!" She countered, her violet eyes lightly accusing.

"What are you talking about?" Yuri said, scratching his head in frustration, this isn't certainly how he envisioned waking up this morning.

"I may be younger than you, but I'm not that stupid!" Alice said, her eyes dilating even more when he made a move to reach for her. He had calculated her next move accurately and Alice found herself trapped once more in his arms.

She squirmed, trying to put as much distance between them as she could. Yuri cocked an eyebrow and looked at her.

"What's the matter baby? You act as if you'd catch something from me."

"It's not that." She said.

"Does my smell offend you?" He persisted.

She shook her head, refusing to look at him.

"What then?" Yuri said, a trace of impatience entering his voice.

"You…you…"

"Yes?" He prompted, bringing her closer to his body and nearly swore out loud when she stiffened.

"_You were thinking dirty thoughts in your sleep_!" Alice said in a rush, not giving herself a chance to lose face and not tell him.

For a moment there was a surprised look in his face before he grinned at her.

"I always think dirty baby, you should know that by now." Yuri said, suddenly amused.

She heard the glee in his voice and she felt indignant. "Well not the ones that make you _big_!" She said, then longed to kick herself when she heard the words spoken out loud.

"Big?" Yuri repeated, he looked confused for a moment, until the realization dawned on him.

It hurts to laugh but he couldn't help it, not even his bruised lips or aching tummy could stop him from chuckling.

"Yuri Hyuga don't you dare laugh at me!" Alice said indignantly, pinching his side a tad too hard.

Yuri winced, but his wicked grin remained in place. "I won't be laughing baby, if only you'd tell me what this is all about."

He waited for her to say something, though he knew already what she meant, he couldn't resist teasing her. He liked it when her temper's up, she could do something she normally wouldn't.

"Well?" he prompted when she remained quiet.

"Between your legs…there was…there was…" Too embarrassed to continue, her words trailed off, her cheeks burning. "Never mind! Let's forget all about it."

"What about the pecker in my pants?" He said, grinning harder when she stiffened.

"Ahhhh…" He said gravely, rubbing his lips against her hair, holding her in place when she would have left him. "Maybe…just maybe it wasn't dirty thoughts that made me _big_ this morning…maybe…I've been…you know…feeling you up while you were asleep…"He suggested wickedly.

"_Yuri_!" Alice gasped, shocked at the thought. Her reaction had been all he had expected and he smiled wolfishly, finally relenting.

"Baby, baby, sweet, innocent baby." He said, pulling her closer to him, "Didn't yer mama ever teach ya anything about men sweetheart?…A man is always 'big' in the morning, it's a fact of life, as reliable as the twenty four balls of the twelve apostles."

He earned the sharp jab of her elbow at his side, cutting off his wicked laughter.

"Oh go away!" She said, but he could see her lips trembling as she tried to keep herself from smiling.

"Yuri!" She protested when he continued nuzzling her neck, making her skin break out in goose bumps. "Yuri let go! I need a bath and—"

"Oh, what a coincidence, I was thinking the same thing…mayhap we can bathe together huh?"

Before she could voice her outrage another joined the fray.

"Why don't you two just get a room and be done with it?" Halley said, perched from the table, lazily stretching his arms with a yawn before scratching his side with a satisfied grin.

Yuri longed to throttle the young Londoner, it seems their companions are just fond of butting their noses in at the most inappropriate times! Knowing that the moment was broken, he released Alice and turned towards the boy who had just hopped down.

"I got a score to settle with you boy." Yuri said as he stood up.

"Oh yeah? Sure, bring it on." Halley said, brushing back the long fringes from his face and then positioning his cap back in place.

"Boys, boys not today please." Margarete said suddenly. "Can't you all see I'm still trying to catch up on with my beauty sleep?" She turned away with a grunt and closed her eyes once more.

"I'm going to take my bath." Alice declared, wrinkling her nose at her unkempt appearance. "You boys can take it outside."

"Aren't you gonna follow her?" Halley asked the older man as Yuri stared after Alice.

"Brat!" He said, swiping an arm over his head which Halley deftly dodged with his own brand of wolfish grin

(O)


	2. Chapter 2

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Chapter Two: The Visitor.

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_London._

A sound woke her up, saving her from her nightmares of sneering masks and the knowledge of her impending death. Alice blinked furiously, acclimatizing her eyes to the darkened room. Her pulse that has been beating madly, now slowly resumed back to its normal rhythm.

For one disoriented moment, she looked around her, heaving a big sigh of relief to find herself back in her room. It was cold, but she was damp from perspiration…telling her how much the dream affected her, how much it affects her still. Shivering she threw the blanket and sat up, knowing she won't be able to go back to sleep so soon.

The room was dark except for the moon rays filtering through the balcony glass doors. With a start she realized the doors were gaping open, the linen curtains fluttering against the cold breeze that whispered into the room.

Shuddering, Alice rubbed her hands over her cold arms and looked around her, certain that she's no longer alone. Before she could reach to switch the bedside lamp on, a figure moved from the darkened background, causing her to gasp in alarm. She didn't notice it was there all this time and felt her pulse kick in fear.

Before she could bolt from the bed, the figure stepped directly in front of the balcony door, illuminating his outline as that of a man.

She easily recognized the ragged, unruly hair and that particular stance.

"Yuri?" She gasped, clasping the bedclothes closer to her neck, a gesture she was unaware of doing. Wholesale relief flooded her as fear dissipated into nothingness. Now she felt like laughing hysterically if not for the fact that she noticed there's something different about him.

Self consciously, Alice pulled the thin quilt higher up her throat. Even donned in her nightgown and covered with the blanket to her little toes, there was something too intimate in having him in her room.

He staggered towards her unsteadily, "Alice…" He said in a slur, and vaguely, through the dim light the filtered into the room, she recognized a long necked bottle he carried at his side.

She switched on the lamp before he could reach her bed, the light illuminating his features, his tousled hair and rumpled clothes. Yuri blinked repeatedly, covering his eyes with his arm as if even the soft light of the lamp was too much for him. But even so, he approached her unsteadily, slightly swinging at his sides. He was wearing pajamas, shirtless and barefooted…obviously he'd come here straight from bed, and not from the hotel's bar downstairs like she had first thought.

Alice felt her mouth go dry at the sight of his bare chest. Smooth, tanned and sleekly muscled…despite his drunken gait, power fairly seethed with every movement; a coordinated, graceful flow of healthy muscles that seemed to enthrall her more and more each time.

"What's this?" He asked, his words slurry, said in that peculiar way only drunks do. "No kiss fer me?" He collapsed on his knees before Alice, making her jump slightly in her place. Yuri seemed to think nothing is amiss and lifted his bottle up to her.

"Wanna drink?" He offered, smiling idiotically, and her nose wrinkled as she caught a whiff of the strong alcohol.

"Yuri…Yuri what are you doing here?" She asked, not knowing what else to say. At the back of her mind Alice kept on wondering what brought him to this state, she had been with him long enough to know that Yuri would never subject himself to anything that would strip him of control.

"…keeping my woman company…something…wrong with that?" He muttered brokenly, breaking in through her thoughts. Yuri displayed another one of his lopsided grin, one that should have made him look like an obnoxious jerk and yet had a different effect on her. He seemed to know exactly how his smile affects her for he kept the silly smile in place and then took another pull at the bottle. "Ain't ya ever lonely? Without me warming yer bed?" He asked, eyeing the bed where she sat, then wiped his lips against the back of his hand that shook unsteadily.

Alice opened her mouth then closed it again, too outraged at his words that she was literally tongue-tied. How dare this cad disturb her sleep and now say these kinds of things to her? She should boot him out, right now, this instant!

But Yuri was clearly foxed and no doubt the drink had made him bolder more than ever. God knows he's a rascal enough without indulging the bottle, and now…

"I think you better go back to _your _bed." She suggested, resorting to being rational instead of hitting him with anything, her books were tucked away in her nightstand, but the lamp looked tempting enough to use on him.

Alice wrinkled her nose as more alcohol-laden breath fanned her nose. She decided that it's best that she didn't give in to the impulse, Yuri's not himself tonight, who knows what she might provoked him into doing if she does club him, tempting as it was.

Yuri seemed unperturbed, grinning up at her without answering. Without warning he took hold of both her hands. His eyes looked impossibly bright against the darkened background, almost inhuman, feral, reflecting the glow of the soft light. But Alice only felt herself drawn in by the sheer magnetism of his gaze, it was as if he's drinking her in, as if slowly stealing her conscious mind, her soul.

She shivered as if cold when he ran his hands over her arms, while pleasure radiated in warm, delicious waves, spreading through her skin, sinking in to the marrow of her bones, making her sigh involuntarily.

The words died on her lips, while her eyelids threatened to droop close, such was her intense reaction to his touch. She was lulled, completely mesmerized by the gentle way he stroked her.

Suddenly, without warning, she felt the whole world tilt on its axis, a movement so swift she never had a chance to protest.

With a start, Alice found herself staring up at the ceiling of the canopied bed. Before she could sit upright again, Yuri hovered over her and pressed her against the pillows, still imprisoning her arms at her side. He surveyed her body boldly, almost arrogantly, and she felt her blood kick in outrage that he would look at her so rudely.

The tousled locks of his hair fell over his face as he looked down at her and declared with a slur. "Alice…I want you Alice."

Alice felt her heart do another somersault when he straddled her body, pining her down the bed between his thighs. He kept most of his weight off her, but that wasn't what made her cheeks burn.

She may be a virgin, but she's not that innocent. The hard thing pulsating against her stomach blatantly declared his arousal.

_Lord have mercy. _She thought silently, fighting off panic. First he comes here nearly naked, foxed,…and now hornier than jackrabbits in heat. She should have shooed him away when she still had the chance!

"Don't be afraid sweetheart…" Yuri whispered huskily, lightly brushing the soft wisps of hair from her face. "I won't harm you…I just…I just wanna love you…" His accent sound thicker, his voice deeper and as she looked up at him, the clarity as well as the seriousness of his gaze belied the irrefutable reek of alcohol.

He may have been drinking, but not as drunk as she first thought.

Her eyes widened in indignation as she realized what Yuri had done. He had caught her unaware by playing the drunk and got her where he wanted her.

In bed.

Seeing that she found out what he'd been about, Yuri dropped the act.

He lowered his head to kiss her and sighed as if weary when Alice turned her head away from his lips. She was stiff in his arms, and by her silence he knew she's working up a big tantrum for what he had done. Yuri knew his tricking her wouldn't please her, but he couldn't think of any other way to get close to her. His ways of seduction may be crude, for he never had a reason to seduce his women, they had flocked to him with open arms, and Alice…well, she's Alice, not just any woman.

"Baby…baby…" He whispered against her skin, lightly running his lips over the angry pulse beating in her neck. "I ain't gonna tell you sorry, 'cause I regret nothin'!"

Alice stiffened even more and Yuri knew she would have thrown him off her if she had the strength, clubbed him with her book until he couldn't see straight and then cast another one of her light spells to keep him sprawled on the floor and _stay there._

But not this time. This time he'll have his way if he has to use every trick and ploy to get her where he wants her.

"I ain't gonna do anything you don' want me to…" He promised, "I just wanna hold you and wake up with you beside me…"

She still glowered at him beneath her lashes, still miffed by being neatly tricked. He couldn't help it, Yuri smiled at the slightly mutinous pout of her lips, and wondered if she would bite him if he gave in to the urge to kiss her.

He brushed her lips with his despite the 'threat', felt his blood kick at the brief contact and tremble with it. He had never been satisfied with teasers anyway.

But before he could steal another kiss, the bright warning in her eyes stopped him. Yuri tried not to smile, knowing it would only serve to annoy her even more, but he couldn't help it so he planted his lips against her forehead, took in the sweet, subtle scent of the shampoo she used that evening and felt his chest tighten with an emotion that is becoming as familiar as his right hand. Yuri held her closer, tighter when Alice squirmed once more to be free of him.

Yuri sighed again and closed his eyes for a moment. He had been patient long enough. He wants his answers and he wants them right now. Her actions these past days have left him alternately angry and depressed. He just couldn't seem to figure out where he stands with her.

"Why have you been avoiding me sweetheart?" He asked softly, making her pause.

Whatever it was he was going to say, this wasn't what she expected. She had thought he would try to sweet talk her to get his way, and she had been half prepared to counter him, but this…

"I…I don't know what you're talking about." Alice said carefully, "and you better go back to your room this instant Yuri Hyuga or I'll scream the roof down!"

But he was not about to be distracted, she should have known it takes more than that to divert his attention elsewhere.

As if he had a changed of mind, Yuri released her and sat at the edge of the bed with his back to her. Alice wasted no time in pulling the blanket high on her throat as if it was an effective shield against him.

He seemed to think for a moment before speaking again. The words when they came out, were soft, almost as if they didn't come from him. "Ever since we came here…you've been—I know you ain't directly avoiding me… but you seem to hold yourself aloof from me. What I wanna know is why?"

Alice was about to reinstate that he leave her room immediately when she heard his words. Slowly she sat upright, suddenly cold despite the blanket that covered her. Chewing her lower lip worriedly, she began to think furiously how she could answer him without lying as well as telling him the whole truth. She cautioned herself that silence is her friend, that she's more likely to give herself away if she tries to counter him with half-truths.

"…insisted on going back to Rouen alone…" Yuri continued talking, unaware of her inner agitation. "Christ! I didn't know whether I should pull you on my lap and spank you for being stubborn or feel hurt or insulted that you didn't want me to tag along."

The thought of him spanking her made her cheeks burn, not even as a little girl, had her own father applied the rod to her backside, and Yuri is...

"I thought you didn't go back to Rouen, that it was just an excuse for you to leave on your own…"

Then perhaps perplexed at her continued silence, Yuri turned his head to look at her. Alice willed her face to betray nothing, though she wondered if she was successful in keeping the mask in place. She looked down at her lap, felt the weight of his stare as he looked at her for what felt like an eternity. She knew what he wants, what he was hoping she would say, and felt like dying for keeping her silence.

And yet, she seemed able to convince him of her indifference, for Yuri turned his head back with a sigh.

_He's so tense_, Alice thought, her agitation rising by the second, she wondered how long she can keep her pretense. Seeing him like that was hurting her beyond that what she expected, and he wasn't finished by a long shot.

"I believed you ain't ever coming back…that you…left us." _I thought you left me, didn't want me anymore._ He added silently. "And after all that crap you've gone through, I didn't think I could blame you if you really did…a lesser woman would have given in the first time trouble came knocking…" He continued talking, his voice beginning to fray with emotions she easily recognized as hurt and confusion

"But you returned, and I had hoped…" He paused, as if debating with himself whether to continue or not. It worried her even more, for Yuri, the proud man who will never own his mistakes even when caught red handed, is now about to open himself to her…making himself vulnerable. _As if he hadn't already_! A voice scoffed in her ears. Tears pricked her eyes, knowing the reason why he's doing it. _Please don't make this any harder on both of us Yuri!_ She longed to cry out to him, but those words remained unspoken, and by keeping silent, Alice knew he would finish what he had begun.

"I was afraid of this. Guess I saw it coming, but refused to believe it. I didn't want to believe it." Yuri confessed softly, his voice trembling as if it hurt him to say those words out loud. "I knew that once you're back in the world you lived in, back with your own people…you won't need me anymore."

If he was going to say anymore words, he finally seemed unable to voice them, Yuri sat there stiffly and waited as if willing her to prove him wrong, his whole body tense, racked by the certainty that she can devastate his whole world with a single word.

Alice closed her eyes even as she felt her chest tighten, gripped by an emotion she didn't want him to see. She longed to deny, refute the words he had spoken, but held herself back. The pain that shot in her palms told her she had been clenching her fists too hard and too long, the pain surprised her. She didn't know she was still capable of feeling hurt, such was her emotional anguish that she believed it eclipsed all pain but its own. All her senses seemed to focus solely on the man who sat at the edge of her bed. The slump of those once proud shoulders told her how down he is. How her ruse had worked effectively to make him believe anything but the truth.

_He must not know._ Alice thought furiously, reaffirming it to herself once more, _He mustn't. It would spoil our last moments together. He'd blame himself, and do stupid things…and there's nothing either of us can do._

_I'm dying. I have accepted that fact a long time ago, when I chose to follow him beyond that gate. He must never know._

_Better to let him believe I'm living somewhere else, away from him but alive and well…_

_

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_

A/N: Yes, this is take 2 on this chapter. XD  
Aegis' review says it all, though may I add that picturing a Yuri in a kilt would probably scar someone for life, it's beginning to sound appealing to me...makes me especially curious now what's underneath a Scotsman's kilt. XD If this doesn't make sense, don't worry, you just missed something er, whacky?

Anyway, this is as far as I can do to improve this chapter, if I could skip this chp and another one and jump to the 'hanky-panky' part, I would do it! Mwahahaha! But no, if I want to write a 'plotless' lemon, I would have done it by now...me is trying to improve! Hehehe, but habits die hard. ;)


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